Legends of Love
by daisukefire
Summary: Rukato AU. Through the cruel Dragon King's domination of the world, comes the tale of two lovers. One a cold battle princess, the other a sorcerer’s apprentice. My first fantasy fic, please let me know what you think...
1. Prologue: Dark Defeats

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Author's Note: Just a little something I was toying around with.  Contains extreme violence.  Email me at: daisukefire@yahoo.com

Legends of Love 

**By DaisukeFire**

_Prologue: Dark Defeats_

The Dragon King.  He was once the fierce Black Knight of the realm of Aeeria.  But his heart was as black as his armor, and he betrayed the king of the realm, killing him and taking his place.  He was a master of war and military strategy.  After a few short years, his army had surpassed any the land had ever seen.  That was when he began his quest, a quest for world domination.  His dream was to have the peoples of the world bow before him and worship him as more than a king, as a god.  He conquered all his neighboring countries, enemy or ally.  Taking confidence in the strength of his army, he besieged the land of Icarnia, a long time ally of Aeeria.  But he overestimated his power, and though his warriors fought valiantly, the armies of Icarnia overcame them.  He and a small remnant of his army managed to escape the slaughter and fled into the desert of Sangania to the south.  But the desert was long and inhospitable.  One by one, each of his soldiers fell, becoming carrion for the vultures to feast on.  Finally, the Black Knight himself was the last survivor of his army.  He fell to his knees in the hot sand.  Death was nigh upon him, and he cried out to the heavens in despair.  He was about to fall into the sand and give up his life, when a shadow fell over him and he blinked up at the creature standing before him.  It was massive and glared down upon him with fiery eyes.  The Black Knight had long though these creatures as nothing more than a myth, but now he believed.  The massive wings of the creature covered over him as the creature bent its long head down to face him.  

"The Black Knight and King of Aeeria, will you accept defeat so soon?"

With a parched throat the Black Knight rasped, "I have no army, and I will soon be dead as well, leave me to die in peace."

The creature seemed to chuckle.  "You asked the heaven's for help, and I have answered you.  Will you now turn me away?"

"How would you help me?"

"My kin and I will help you, become your partners in war.  With your military genius and our strength, together we can rule to the world.  All that I ask is that my kin and I be given the southern realm of the world to our own, once we have gained control of the world.  For far too long humans have hunted us, and our numbers grow weary and thin.  The southern part of the world shall belong to us, and no human shall ever enter there.  Do you accept my offer, or shall I slay you now?"

The Black Knight looked upon the creature in amazement and wonder, and then answered, "Yes, together we shall rule the world, together."

"Good," the creature answered and then, before the Black Knight could flinch, drove one of its large claws through his chest.  The Black Knight looked at the creature in terror and surprised.  Then the dragon pulled back its limb, severing the claw and leaving it impaled in the Black Knight.  "I will give you incredible strength and immortality, unless you are slain by human hands, to enforce our pact to the ends of time.

The Black Knight gasped in horror and amazement as the claw began to melt and coat his entire body with a thick, scaly covering.  Two wings of skin and bone protruded from his back, and claws formed at the tip of each of his fingers.  

The dragon continued, "You are now immortal.  Rise and begin the rebuilding of your army once again.  When you have sufficient strength, send a sacrifice to this very spot and one of my kin will meet you.  Then I shall send an army of dragons to aid your army."  The creature beat its wings furiously in the dry dessert air and lifted off the ground, sending a harsh spray of sand at the Black Knight.  This blast would have torn the flesh from any normal human, but the Black Knight easily withstood it.  As the creature set off, gliding into the horizon, the Black Knight tried his newly acquired wings and lifted into the air.  He flew north, in search of a place to begin the rebuilding of his forces.  He was now unstoppable.  He was no longer the Black Knight, and no longer human as well.  He was now the Dragon King.

That is the legend of the Dragon King, and his coming to immense power.  But the tale of which I speak is not a tale of war, but a tale of love.  It is the tale of an unforeseen love between a hard-hearted warrior woman, and a mysterious sorcerer.  Together they defeated the Dragon King, and freed the world of his domination.  I shall begin with the beginning…  
            

**_Drums of war blast through the air,_**

**_Many fierce warriors fall,_**

**_Leaving behind widows and children,_**

**_But the best fighters have nothing to lose,_**

**_They are cold and unfeeling,_**

**_Living only for the consuming whiteness of battle,_**

**_Living as more of a weapon than that which they bear,_**

**_Leaving a river of death where they tread…_**

Blazing fires of glory and death covered the landscape.  Fallen soldiers and carrion painted the earth crimson.  Streams of blood flowed from deep puddles into the dark waters of the massive lake bordering the battleground.  The screams of tearing steal and the metallic ringing of iron swords clashing sung in the eternal melody of war.  

The loud bass of the drums of war caused the adrenaline in her blood to flow.  Odors of sweat and rotting flesh tackled her nostrils.  The sword, almost half her height, was light and it danced through the air, tearing and cutting the flesh of her enemies.  She had slain all attackers around her, and she stopped for a moment to absorb the passion of battle.  The full moon glimmered in its eerie beauty, highlighting the shadows on the ground.  

Smirking, she raised her sword and rushed another group of enemies.  Her fiery hair blazed as the brutal wind rushed through it.  An enemy soldier noticed her approach and raised his heavy spear above his head in an attempt to parry the oncoming blow.  The girl let out a cry of fury as she brought the double-edged broad sword down on his head.  It cut through the spear like an axe through a twig, and lodged deep into the man's head.  Without another thought she ripped the sword from the slain man's head and twisted around, the blade screeching through the air.  The enemy that had planned to cut her down from behind gasped as the blade ripped through his neck, sending his head crashing to the ground.  Hot blood cascaded from his neck.

Another soldier who had been rushing her dug his heels into the ground and turned to run, screaming.  The girl raised the sword behind her head and then threw it at the fleeing man.  It raced through the air like and arrow, and hit the man in the back, cutting through his body so that the hilt of the sword rested against his back.  The enemy fell to the ground as blood gushed from the wound in his back, as well as from his mouth.  Quickly, the girl ripped the sword from her conquered victim and raised it in time to block the attack of a large battle-axe that had been aimed at her head.  Her purple eyes gleamed with fierce fire as she looked into the empty slots for eyes of an enemy knight.  He raised his foot and kicked her in the stomach so that she flew back a few feet and tumbled to the ground.  The blow had not hurt her.  The silver mail she wore would take more than that to break.  Cockily, the knight approached her, raising his axe.  He was huge, almost twice her size.  But she was fast.  He swung his axe at her, but she rolled out of the way.  A large cloud of dust rose from the ground and coated the body of a fallen soldier.  The girl, having lost her sword, yanked a black chain-mace from her belt at the side.  She shuffled to the side and observed the turning speed of the knight.  He let out a deep laugh and followed with a horizontal swing of his axe.  He had not taken into account the consequences of missing his target, and the girl ducked under the blow.  The momentum of the swing caused the knight to turn his back to the girl, who took advantage of her enemy's mistake. She swung the mace in a few quick circles and then leapt toward the knight, who had turned his head just in time to witness his death.  The heavy spiked ball crashed into his helmet, crushing it like a tin can.  Blood and brain tissue gushed from the crushed eyeholes of his helmet, and he fell to the ground.  

She smirked in victory, but it was short lived.  The sounds of battle had stopped around her, and all soldiers, her comrades and enemies, turned toward her.  The ground shook and the girl struggled not to fall to her knees.  She turned around to see a massive green dragon swipe one of its claws into a group of soldiers and send their shattered bodies crashing to the side.  The dragon stopped in front of her and gazed into her eyes.  Though his reptilian face showed no expression, his eyes seemed to laugh at her with malice.  She could feel his breath caress her face as he exhaled.  The stench of it was unbearable.

The girl bent down and picked up her sword from the ground with her left hand and detached a black shield with the symbol of a rising star emblazed on it from her back.  She raised the sword and shield into battle position and sternly returned the dragon's gaze.  

"So I finally meet the legendary Angel of Death," the dragon hissed.  

"And whom might you be, lord of dragons?" the girl spat.

"I am Aurung, head commander of the Dragon King's armies.  You should have been there to see your king's fall.  We mashed his body, along with his banner-bearer's, into a pulp on the ground.  You shall share in his fate, girl."

"The king," the girl gasped under her breath.

"You're army is defeated, no one can withstand the might of the dragon king."

"We shall see," the girl screamed as she leapt at the dragon's head, bringing it down on the dragon's head with all her might.  The sword rang a shrill scream as it burst into shards.  One of the shards ricocheted off the dragon's head and pierced the girl's left arm.  She was too intent on battle to feel the pain, or to take the time to remove the shard from her arm.  

The dragon hardly seemed phased as it lifted its head and glared at her.  It raised its head back and spewed forth an ocean of hot flames at the girl.  The girl put the shield in front of her body and was pushed back a few feet as the flames charred the ground around her.  Gripping the mace at her side, she jumped at the dragon.  A fierce scream of uncontrollable anger and hate escaped her lips as she prepared to strike.  The dragon, prepared for the attack, swiped at her with one of its clawed forelimbs.  The girl's shield shattered and she flew through the air in defeat.  He body was bruised and tortured so much that she would no longer be able to fight that day, or ever.  

She had died in a blaze of fierce glory; no other death could be so fitting.  The last thought that passed through her mind before she lost consciousness was that she had failed.  She had failed to avenge the king, and she had failed to protect him.  All was lost…

Author's Note:  Short, I know.  I wrote it mainly to get my thoughts flowing again.  Honestly, this is complete crap and it's some of my worst writing.  I don't intend to continue it because it's so terrible.  I intend to delete this after a few days; I just wanted some feedback from a few friends.  Sorry for getting your hopes up if you liked it, my bad.


	2. The Dragon Slayer

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Author's Note: This is the revised version of the second chapter, which, in my opinion was unsalvageable to the rest of the story unless I changed some of it, so I did.  I hope you find Jenrya more in character, and the Christianity is gone, it just didn't work.  Now that I've finish revising this chapter, I hope to get onto the next one. ^_^*

Contains extreme violence.  Email me at: daisukefire@yahoo.com

Ruki = Rika

Jenrya = Henry

Legends of Love By DaisukeFire Chapter Itchi: Dragon Slayer Four years later… 

The rhythmic beat of the horse's hooves echoed off the tightly packed dirt road, a trail of dust rising in the path behind the black steed.  The rider shouted to the horse to go faster just as the rough wake of a flying creature shot overhead.  Gazing up into the night sky, the rider saw the silhouette of a dragon cross the moon, and then circle back down and accelerate in her direction.  Urgently she rammed the heels of her heavy boots into the horse's side, causing it to burst forward and increase its speed.  She looked to find the dragon's position in the sky, only to be surprised at how fast it had reached her.  The rider ducked her head as a spray of flames screamed just above her head.  The heat was intense, but she'd felt hotter.  She glanced over her shoulder to see the dragon circling around for another strike.  Quickly she pulled back the horse's reins, bringing the horse to a stop on its back legs as it raised its front ones high into the air.  She jumped off its back and looked into its eyes.

"Stay here, Rena.  I'll be right back," she said soothingly to the steed.  Then she took off sprinting in the direction of the dragon.  She drew the sword from its sheath, which was strapped across her back.  

The black armor she wore clanked as she ran.  Yet it was light and didn't hinder her mobility.  She'd had it specially forged by the land's most prominent smith a couple of years ago.  It could withstand the blows of most swords, but she was able to swim in it as well.

When she was a safe distance from the horse, she stopped and awaited the oncoming dragon.  Yet it did not attack when it approached, but landed a short distance in front of her.  She remained silent, raising her two-handed broad sword into battle position.   

"Human, you've entered the southern realm.  The Dragon King has annexed it to us dragons, and you are forbidden to enter here.  I give you now the choice of leaving peacefully, or I shall kill you," the dragon warned.

The girl smirked, "The decrees of the Dragon King mean nothing to me.  You act as the hunter here, destroying those who enter your realm.  But have you ever considered that I might be the one hunting you?"

The dragon pulled back his head in dismay, "You cannot be the "Dragon Slayer."  It is impossible that a woman could have killed so many of my brethren.  Do you say this to try and scare me away?  I should kill you right now for such an insult to my intelligence!"

"Then let us make a bet," the girl laughed, "if I slay you, then I shall rip out your teeth and sell them to all the superstitious fools out there, as I do with all dragons I defeat.  But if you defeat me, then you may tell all of your kin that you were the one to slay the "Dragon Slayer."  Deal?"

The dragon growled, "How dare you show such disrespect for one superior to you!  I'll feast on your flesh once I tear the life from your body!"  Then, with a motion so quick and well placed that it would have diced most knights, the dragon swiped his claws at her.  But she was no lightweight knight; in fact she wasn't even a knight at all.  Long anticipating the time and direction of the swing, the girl dug the bottoms of her boots into the ground and pushed back as hard as she could.  This resulted in her dodging the fatal blow by just a few inches.

She could feel the surge of energy overwhelm her as adrenalin was dumped was into her bloodstream.  This feeling was all that she lived for anymore.  Every resting moment was spent preparing for the next fight.  Was it this passion, this love for battle that made her seem invincible?  Many people had called her a goddess of war, and her most common title had once been the "Angel of Death."  That title and person were long dead now, they had died in the siege of the forgotten realm of Icarnia.  Now she was the "Dragon Slayer."  This name was less flashy, and really didn't seem to strike fear into the hearts of her enemies, but it described her to a tee.  

Adjusting her black gauntlets to grip the sword better, she leapt in at the dragon with her sword raised over her head.  The dragon did not flinch.  Rather than bringing the sword down on the dragon's head, though, she checked the swing midway and instead kicked the dragon's lower jaw with her boot.  The dragon reeled its head back in surprise, a trickle of blood flowing from his jaw.  He looked down at the girl, and then at her boots; they were spiked at the tips.  

The girl smiled.  She knew that the blow she had dealt had hardly hurt the dragon, but she always liked to toy with them before she gave them their deathblow.    She was not as ignorant as she had been in her younger years.  She had learned the hard way that the dragon's scaly armor was thickest on its back and on the top of its head.  You would have more luck trying to hammer your way through a mountain than to penetrate the backside of a dragon.  The weakness of the dragon was its belly.  One or two good blows to its underside would bring it down.  But exposing its belly was easier said than done.  

The dragon seemed to forget its minor wound, began to beat its wings.  Rising into the air, it spewed a blast of flames at the girl.  The girl rolled to the side, but a few of the flames touched her shoulder.  Smoke rose from her singed armor, and the girl growled angrily.  Now she would have to polish it to get it back to its black shine again.  

_Enough games_, she decided.  The dragon swooped down with his jaws open, planning to snap her in half with a single bite.  The dragon slayer pulled to the side, at the same time drawing a dagger that had rested at her side.  As the dragon shot by, she placed the dagger in its mouth, the tip pointing up in the dragon's mouth so that the dragon bit down the dagger would impale its brain.  

The dragon crashed to a stop and clawed at its mouth, trying to free the dagger from its jaws.  The girl took the dragon's distraction to her advantage and attacked from behind.  With a vertical slash she sliced through the skin of its left wing, cutting the flap into two sections.  This would prevent the dragon from going airborne again.  The dragon rose onto its back feet in pain, still clawing at its mouth to remove the dagger.  The girl dodged its random slashing and moved in front of it.  The dragon gasped as it realized what she was doing, and tried to swipe her away.  But it was too late, and she drove the sword into its belly with all her might.  The dragon thrashed in pain, but the girl did not let go of the sword.  She laughed triumphantly and began to push the sword across the dragon's belly, spilling its insides.  

In fear and pain the dragon pulled away from her, trying to flee the battle.  But its sliced wing would not catch the air and it fell to the ground.  The girl watched with an icy smirk as the dragon began crawling away from her.  After it had gone a few feet, its arms lost all strength and it fell to the ground, dead in defeat.  The girl waited for a few minutes to make sure most of the blood had drained from the dragon's body, and to make sure it was dead.  The last thing she wanted was to loose a limb when it snapped at her in one last motion of death.  

Certain the dragon was dead, she approached its head.  The dagger was still lodged in its jaws and a pool of blood had formed where the carcass lay.  She forced open the jaws and removed the dagger.  Then, using the dagger, she began to dig out the teeth from its jaw.  She would also cut the claws from its fingers.  The black market for dragon's teeth and claws was well paying, and she had a monopoly on the market.  She needed the money to purchase the food and supplies needed to continue her quest of exterminating the dragon race.  This was always the hard part, slaying the dragon was fun but only lasted a few minutes, this one had been easier than normal.  But removing the teeth and claws would still take her a few hours.  

She looked over the dragon to make sure her steed hadn't fled, and seeing the horse still standing where she had left it, whistled and called, "Rena!"  The horse trotted to her, but kept a few feet away.  It never liked to get close to the dragons.

The sun was just rising when she cut the last claw from its foot, scrapped it clean of the flesh, and placed it into a brown supply pack on Rena.  She pulled some dried fruit and meat from a different pack and chewed on the food.  The girl was disappointed to see that her supplies were running low, and that she would have to leave dragon country for the civilized world to get food again.  Hopping onto Rena's back, she gently hit her heals against the horse's side and it started a relaxed trot.  

Still chewing on the food, she looked back at the dragon's corpse.  The corpse was her calling card.  In a few hours, dragons patrolling the area would find it and know she had struck once again.  

Dragons.  She hated them as much as she loved killing them.  She had been told that there were good dragons as well as the bad ones out there.  But if this was so, where were those good ones to stop the bad ones from giving the Dragon King so much power?  To her a dragon was a dragon.  Any dragon she could get her hands on, good or bad, would feel the edge of her blade.  

The horse and rider continued traveling for a few more hours, and they had been close to the border of dragon country, so the girl was sure that they were now well out of the southern realm.  

Stopping in a grove of trees, well away from the sight of the road, she dismounted her steed and tied its reins to a tree.  She heard the song of a stream nearby, and looked at her body.  Her armor was covered in the dried blood of the dragon, and dirt caked her boots.  She was overwhelmed by the smell of sweat and rotting flesh coming from her body.  Normally she ignored being so grungy, but since she was heading to civilization, she decided a bath might be necessary.  

The water was cool and relaxing as she bathed.  Her armor lay clean and neatly organized on the bank of the stream, and she had cleaned her sword as well.  The dagger she kept in her hand as she bathed.  She would not be caught off guard and unarmed.  She speared a few fish that swam close to her, tossing them on the bank to her rear for her dinner that afternoon.  

Her muscles relaxed from the tension, caused by years of battle, which plagued them.  She lay her head on a smooth rock and let the water rinse the dirt and oil from her hair.  The sun was warm, and the water gentle.  As much as she tried, she was unable to keep the peacefulness of her dreams from consuming her, and she fell asleep.

*******

            The sound of something rushing through the trees around her tore her from the sleep she treasured.  She caught a glimpse of something red moving, but her eyes were still somewhat blurred with sleep.  Sitting up, she looked in the trees around her.  She could still see Rena tied where she had left her.  The horse seemed calm, and if something dangerous were around, Rena wouldn't hesitate to start neighing in distress.  The dragon slayer was certain that she smelled a dragon, but the smell could be coming from her hands, which she never seemed to be able to get clean.   Whatever she had seen was gone now, and she decided it was best not to worry about it.  She turned to gather the fish she'd speared, only to find pieces of them left.  Whatever had been there had eaten her dinner.  The dragon slayer wasn't too upset about it, though, she had some dried meat still in her supply sack.  Not quite as good as fish, but it would suffice.  

            She rose from the water and put on the tunic she wore under her armor.  She had just finished putting on her boots when she heard it.  It was the sound of taunting, and it was coming from the road.  She grabbed her sword and trotted to the edge of the grove.  In the road were three men, all of them scraggly and grim looking.  Thieves, the girl guessed, surrounded a young man in a strange looking gray robe.  One of the men had a pack and was throwing the contents of it carelessly to the ground.  

            One, who appeared to be the leader of the group, said, "Don't you have anything of value?"

            The young man calmly replied, "No, I'm sorry.  I don't have many possessions." 

            "Well, I do like that outfit you've got on, it looks very comfortable," said one of the other thieves.  

            "And what about that dangly thing around his neck?  Is that real silver?" asked the leader.

            "You can't have this," the man said sternly as he grasped the decoration in his hands.  It was a silver star with a quarter moon in the center.

            "I'll cut your head off to get it if I have to," the leader snarled, moving in on the young man.

            "Please, don't make me fight you… you wouldn't want that," replied the man, a certain, confident gleam in his eyes.

            The girl decided that now was the time to move.  Whoever the man in the gray robe was, he certainly didn't look like he could handle himself, despite his strong words.  She began walking toward the group.  One of the thieves noticed her approach and said something to the others who turned and looked at her.  The man in gray looked at her in confusion.  

            "Leave him alone," the dragon slayer growled.

            The leader laughed, "And what are you going to do about it, peasant girl?"

            The dragon slayer smirked and raised her sword.  "I'm no peasant.  Let him go or answer to me."

            "I can take care of myself," the man in gray said to the dragon slayer.

            "Sure," she laughed.

            "I'd hate to have to fight such a pretty," interrupted the leader, "little, and innocent young thing."  His smile was toothless and ugly.  "It would be a sin to get blood on such a beautiful face."

            "If anyone's blood paints my face, it will be yours."

            The leader turned to his companion with the pack and said, "Go and get her.  She'll make us some good evening entertainment."

            "Right," the thief smiled and ran towards the girl, raising a large branch that he intended to use as a club.  He swung at the girl, who easily parried the blow with her sword.  The thief swung again only to find his blow blocked once again.  Crying out angrily, he swung the club over his head and down at her.  The dragon slayer sidestepped so the blow hit the ground, and then brought her sword down on the club, splintering it just below the thief's hand.  He cried out in dismay and tried to punch her.  She dodged and drove her spiked book into his thigh.  Moaning in pain, the man began hobbling  back to his companions, who looked at the girl in fear.  The leader and other companion began to run, leaving their hurt companion pleading with them not to abandon him.  

            When the thieves were a good distance away, the girl approached the young man and picked up his pack.  She stuffed a few of his possessions in it and handed it to him.  Then she turned and began to head back to the trees.  

            The young man called after her, "Wait!"  The girl stopped and turned to look at him.  He was a dark haired young man with a pleasant face, and he panted as he stopped just in front of her.  "Thank you, that was very impressive."

            "It was nothing… nice dress," the dragon slayer said coldly.

            "This isn't a dress, it's a robe.  Thank you for helping me, but I could have taken care of them fine by myself."

            The dragon slayer smirked, "You probably would have tripped on your dress."

            "I'm peaceful most of the time, and I only result to fighting when I have to.  But when I do fight, I am always confident that I will win."

            "You certainly don't look like a fighter," the dragon slayer said, cocking one of her thin eyebrows.

            "I am a missionary from the east.  There my order is responsible for protecting the people, and we are fully trained in the art of fighting."

            "Oh, a religious man," the girl scoffed.  "Not many of you journey into this land, most consider it evil."

            "That's true, but that's also what makes it so much more important to preach peace here.  I'm a Paladin, a very important religious position where I come from.  No one from my order would come here, so I volunteered."

            "So you're a fighting religious man?  Weird."

            "Yes, and it's not that weird.  By the way, what are you, if you're not peasant?"

            "A dragon slayer," she smirked calmly.

            The Paladin looked surprised, "You say that as if you're serious.  I'm serious about being a missionary."

            "And I'm serious about being a dragon slayer."

            "Come now.  Everyone knows that dragons are just myths."

            "What, do you live in a monastery or something?"

            "Well yes… I do.  But no one has ever reported seeing a dragon in the east.  I've always been taught that they were just an evil myth from this land."

            The dragon slayer sighed in annoyance.  "I doubt dragons would go east anyways, there's nothing worthwhile out there anyways."

            "Hey- "

"Well I don't suppose you've heard of the Dragon King then either."

            "No, who's he."

            "Never mind," she shook her head.  "You lead a much too sheltered life."

            "I'm sorry, but I refuse to believe in something so foolish as dragons until I actually see one."

            "Fine with me.  You probably won't see any around here, most reside in the southern realm."  The dragon slayer began to walk away.

            "Wait!  I'm sorry if I've angered you.  We haven't been properly introduced yet.  My name is Jenrya, what's yours?"

            "I have a lot of names, what do you care?"

            "It always helps to know the name of a friend," he said, disappointed in her indifference.

            "Who said I was your friend?"  The two were now into the grove and the girl began digging in some of the packs at Rena's side.  She turned to him and tossed him one of the dragon's teeth she'd harvested that morning.  "You can call me Ruki."

            The Paladin looked up at her and smiled, "Thanks Ruki.  What's this, why's it sticky and why does it stink?"

            "A dragon's tooth, because it's fresh, and because all dragons stink."

            The man dropped it and took a step back.  "Nice try, but I still don't believe in dragons, and I don't even want to know what poor creature you got that from."

            Ruki shrugged and began to gather her gear and pack it onto Rena.  She picked up the tooth from the ground and looked at Jenrya, "Don't be so careless with these, they're worth a lot of gold."

            "Sorry."

            The girl walked back to the stream and began to put her armor back on.  Noticing that Jenrya hadn't left she told him, "You're free to go.  You don't owe me anything for saving you."

            "Well actually, the only reason I was on this road is because I was lost.  I was hoping that maybe you could be my guide for a little while.  I can't pay you, but I will teach you some of my religion if you wish."

            "Your beliefs mean nothing to me, and they make me desire your company even less.  I would just assume leave you out here and let the dragons get you, but then I would never see the look on your face when you realized that I was right." 

            "So what are you going to do?"

            "I guess you can come with me to the next town.  Then you can go wherever you want from there."  The dragon slayer, now fully dressed in her armor, hoped on top of Rena and looked down at the missionary.

            "Thank you very much.  I shall do my best to keep up with your horse."

            "Don't fool yourself, it'll take forever if we go at your pace.  Climb on."  Jenrya looked unsure.  Becoming impatient, Ruki patted the horses rear and ordered, "Get on the horse."

            Jenrya gulped and climbed on the horse, and turned red as he grabbed onto the girls waist.  "Please excuse me for holding onto you like this, I've never ridden a horse before."

            Ruki looked at him in surprise, "How else do you expect to hang on?  Yah!"  The horse shot forward and Jenrya had to grip her all the tighter to keep from falling off.  

            "This is ironic, usually it is the girl holding onto the man as he rides the horse," he yelled to her.  She ignored him.

            While she rode, the missionary behind her spouted out all the wonderful things about his religion and his home was so great.  She ignored his foolish chatter and looked at her surroundings as they rushed across the landscape.  Glancing to a forest to her left, she thought she saw the red creature she had seen earlier.  She slowed the horse and then brought it to a stop.

            "Why are we stopping?" Jenrya asked with a dumb look.

            Ruki shushed him and stared into the trees.  Yes, the red thing was definitely there, but it was hard to make out its shape.  Then she noticed a wing, a tail, and finally the regular ugly face.  "A dragon!" she hissed happily.  Dragon's were a rare site out of the southern lands, and this one was probably a loner since it was out of dragon country.

            "Where, I don't see it?"

            The dragon slayer reached to her side and pulled a bow and some arrows from her supplies.  She quickly thread an arrow into the bow.  As she drew the arrow back in its tight string, she waited for the head to appear again.  Though she preferred close combat, sniping was also enjoyable.  All she would need is one arrow through its eye; that should be enough to kill it.

            Jenrya continued his rambling.  "Even if it is a dragon, which it isn't of course, I consider all life to be sacred.  I highly object to you killing whatever it is."

            The dragon slayer ignored him.  She could see the top of its head now.  If she just waited a few more seconds, its eye would be exposed and she would send the arrow straight into its head.

            Jenrya, realizing that she wasn't going to listen to him, yelled at the top of his lungs, "Run creature, you are hunted!"

            Ruki saw the dragon's head rise in confusion, and then she saw its body shoot out through the top of the trees and begin flying away.  She turned back and looked at the priest crossly, "You really shouldn't have done that!  Now we have to chase it!  Yah!"  She pulled the reins of the horse and kicked it.  Rena jumped and began running across the plain, keeping the dragon just above and ahead.  

"D-d-dragons are r-real?" Jenrya stuttered, his mouth gaping. 

The dragon was flying across the plain and away from the main road.  Jenrya grasped the dragon slayer for dear life, struggling not to fall from the intense dashing of the horse.  

The dragon slayer was surprised that the dragon hadn't turned back to attack them yet.  It seemed like this one was… afraid.  Most dragons were cocky, and only blinked in remote terror at hearing the name: Dragon Slayer.  This one seemed to be running from her.  Well -if that was the case- then she would follow it until it landed, or until she lost track of it.  She hated it when her prey escaped.

"We're too slow," Ruki growled looking back at the Paladin, who had his eyes closed and was mumbling some kind of prayer.  "If you want to be of help, Jenrya, pray that this dragon doesn't drag us halfway across the world!"

"Right!" 

They continued racing across the plain for nearly an hour.  Ruki knew Rena must have been getting tired by now, and if it came down to choosing between hurting Rena of exhaustion and killing the dragon, or letting it escape, she would let the dragon go free.  But in the distance was a large forest, and she saw the dragon dive into the thick cover of the trees.  She laughed inside.  Did this dragon really think it could hide from her?  

When they reached the edge of the forest, the dragon slayer brought her horse to a stop and then she hopped off.  Jenrya slowly worked his way of the steed, and then began rubbing his behind.  The dragon slayer looked at him, "Sorry, you must not be used to riding bareback."

"I'm not used to riding at all, remember?" he moaned.

The girl wrapped the bow around her shoulder and took a few arrows in one of her hands.  She didn't intend to use them, but she wanted to be prepared for the opportunity.  "You," she pointed to the Paladin, "stay here and watch my horse."  Then she turned and walked into the forest.  Jenrya yelled at her to wait, and that he would come with her, but she ignored him.

She walked carefully through the foliage-cluttered paths of the forest, making sure to avoid stepping on anything that might alert her position to the dragon.  The dense mass of leaves above her blocked most of the light entering the forest, save for an occasional beam of light illuminating the ground.  Birds chirped and darted from branch to branch, ignoring the dragon slayer's presence.  

Eventually she heard the soothing song of a small pond.  She crept between a couple of thick tree trunks, and peeked into the clearing.  In it was the dragon, looking in her direction.  It was curled up like a cat that might spring if an enemy came near it.  It seemed to be shaking.  Ruki felt all to honored that it was afraid of her, but she wasn't about to let overconfidence make her miss a kill.  Standing next to the dragon, however, was a man with his back turned to her.  He wore a bright cloak with a simple white tassel tied around his waist.  In one of his hands was a wooden staff.  The man didn't move, he just stood there looking down at the dragon.

"What's with everyone wearing dresses lately?" the girl mumbled to her self.

"That's not a dress, it's a robe," the Paladin said as he came up behind her.

"Be quiet, you fool!" Ruki growled, "I thought I told you to stay with the horse."

"Don't worry, I tied it up.  Besides, you're going to need my help.  There's no way you could fight that beast on your own."

"I don't need your help, and even if I did, what would you do?  Stab it with your pendant?  Don't even think about warning it again, because if you do I'll drag you with me until I finally have its teeth in my bag."

The Paladin looked at her in defeat, "I still don't think you should kill it.  Who's that man in red there?"

"I don't know, and I don't care.  But if he stands in my way I'll kill him to get to the dragon."

Jenrya bent his head sadly, "I can't understand why you treat life as if it were so unimportant."

The dragon slayer laid her bow and arrows against the trunk of the tree and looked at Jenrya, "We all have an emptiness inside of us, Paladin.  Maybe your religion helps fill yours.  Well, fighting fills mine.  Would you deprive me of that?"

"I suppose not, though in my opinion life should only be taken if absolutely necessary."

Ruki drew her sword slowly, so as to keep its ring low.  Then she pivoted around the tree and began walking quickly toward the clearing.  The dragon only seemed to shake harder as it watched her approach.  But before she could begin her attack, the man in blue turned around.  He was young, with brown hair and a friendly face.  Yet as he looked at her his face seemed to fill with power and determination.  A fierce wind appeared out of nowhere and began whipping the dragon slayer's hair violently.  The man seemed to grow in size and when he cried out his voice sounded like thunder, "You shall not hurt this dragon!"

The dragon slayer took a surprised step back and looked at him in awe for a moment.  Then she regained her composure and gave the man an icy glare.  "What are you?  Some kind of wizard?"

"Yes!  I am the great sorcerer Takato!"

"Well, great sorcerer Takato, I suggest you move.  I will cut you down to get to this dragon if I have to."

"I will not let you hurt him."

Ruki sighed and walked forward.  The wizard stared at her in surprised.  Then he let out a grunt as the dragon slayer easily pushed him to the ground.  He shook his head and gasped as she walked toward the dragon raising her sword into battle position.  The dragon just seemed to cower more.

"Wait!" Takato cried, the strength in his voice turning to pleading.  "That dragon is my friend.  Please don't hurt it!"

Ruki looked back at him angrily, "How can a dragon be anyone's friend?"

"I've known him all my life.  He's just a child compared to most dragons.  He would never hurt anyone.  I doubt he would even fight you back."

Ruki looked from the wizard to the dragon, "Well, he is kind of small, and he doesn't look like much of a fight."

Takato sighed in relief, "Thank you."

The dragon slayer lowered her head and then laughed, "But dragon's teeth are dragon's teeth!"  She raised her sword and rushed in at the dragon.  The dragon closed its eyes in fear and whimpered.

When the girl swung her sword, intending to sever one of the dragon's wings, she found it blocked by the staff of the wizard.  She looked furiously into his face.

"Please," Takato said, taking a few steps back and lowering his staff.  "I don't want to fight you.  But I won't let you hurt my friend either."

Ruki pulled back her sword, intending to swing it at the wizard, but a voice cried out for them not to fight.  Ruki turned her head back to see the Paladin rushing up.  "Stay out of this, Jenrya," she growled.

Jenrya put himself between the two and said, "Please, there's no need for you two to fight."  He looked at Ruki, "Do you really want to kill this dragon?  Is it really worth it?"

"Yes," Ruki hissed.

"Can't you see that Takato is really friends with it?  The dragon can't be all that bad if it has this wizard here to defend it."

"It's not a matter of the dragon being good or not.  I hate all dragons, good or bad, and I won't be at peace until they're all destroyed."

"Why?" Takato blurted out.

Ruki turned and looked at him, lowering her sword.  "My reasons are my own.  But since you two are so intent on protecting this one, and I would probably have to kill both of you to get at it, I suppose I'll let it go."  She pushed Jenrya away, and began walking back towards the trees.  She called over her shoulder, "If I find it and you're not around, wizard, then I won't hesitate to kill it."

"Wait!" cried Takato.  Ruki stopped and turned back to him.  "I know we've gotten off to a bad start, but please stay.  I was just about to begin cooking dinner, and I would love to have some company."

The dragon slayer was about to scoff at him, but her stomach interrupted her with a growl.  Takato and Jenrya smiled at the sound.  Ruki wanted to be alone now more than ever, but a cooked dinner did sound good, and the dried meat and fruit in her pack didn't seem very appetizing.  She frowned, "Fine, I'll stay only because I haven't had a cooked meal in over a month."

Author's Note: What did you think of this chapter?  I had hoped to get into more Rukato, but next chapter there will be more, I promise.  Thanks for reading.  ^^


	3. Living Like Thunder

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, duh.

_Author's Note:  Sorry for taking forever to get the next chapter out, I just have too many ideas and not enough time to write.  I did change a few things in chapter two from what I originally posted, such as making Jenrya more IC and killing the Christianity, it just wasn't working.  So you may want to skim the previous chapter, though I doubt you would be very confused if you didn't.  I hope to get another chapter out in a couple weeks hopefully.  Enjoy! ^_^*_

~*Legends of Love *~ 

**By DaisukeFire**

Chapter Nie:  _Living Like Thunder_

The small fire blazed warmly in the night air, the wood popping and crackling as it was consumed.  Ruki was quiet as she ate the chunks of cooked rabbit meat from a spit she had set over the fire.  Jenrya and Takato had become instant friends and were busily chatting away.  The dragon lay a few feet away from them, sleeping peacefully.  

"Takato, you're a fabulous cook!" laughed Jenrya as he happily munched on the meat.

"I thought you considered all life to be sacred," Ruki scoffed at him.

"There's nothing wrong with killing for food, but you kill for money, and that is wrong."

Ruki glared at him, "I don't kill dragons for the money, it's purely for the sport."

"What could be fun about killing dragons?  What did they ever do to you?" Takato asked soberly.

Ruki didn't answer.

Jenrya added, "Please tell us Ruki, there must be some reason that you take so much pleasure in such a gruesome and dangerous sport."

"What's there to tell?  Dragons are ugly, smelly, dumb and evil creatures."  The dragon let out a snort of sleepy disapproval.  "They're good for nothing, I have the same remorse after killing one of them that I have after swatting a fly."

"Dragon's are not evil, just look at Guil, he would never hurt anyone unless he had to." Takato looked at Ruki disapprovingly.

"Well, he may not be evil," Ruki laughed, "but he certainly is ugly, he stinks and he looks pretty dumb to me."

"You don't even know him!"

"All dragons are the same!"

"No they aren't, just like humans, there are good ones and there are bad ones."

A glint of anger shown in Ruki's eyes, "It was the dragon's who gave the Dragon King his power.  Dragons destroyed my kingdom and killed my king.  That's enough reason to hate them.  And if your dragon is so good, where were he and his friends when the Dragon King and his army of Dragons began to take over all the lands?"

"I'm an orphan," came a reptilian voice from the dragon as he looked carefully at Ruki.  "My parents were killed by other dragons, trying to stop them from killing Takato and his mother."

Ruki looked at the dragon, her eyes almost shining with empathy.  Takato added, "My mother was killed by the dragons, but they would have killed me too if it hadn't been for Guil's parents.  Neither Guil or I remember our parents because we were just babies then, but we still know about them."

"Why would Dragons want to kill or protect you and your mother?" Ruki laughed.  "It seems a little trivial for dragons to waist their time like that."

"Ruki, show some compassion!" cried the Paladin.

"No," Takato answered somberly, "she has a good point.  Ruki you say you hate the Dragon King because he destroyed your kingdom and king, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, you know that the Dragon King was also once called the Black Night of Aeeria, and that he betrayed and killed the king and took his thrown?"

"Yeah, I remember being taught that."

"Well, the King of Aeeria was my father.  My mother, who's of the Elvin race, had a premonition that he would betray them.  She warned my father, but my father was too confident in the Black Knight's loyalty.  My mother knew what would come, and fled with me before the Black Knight could kill us as well."

"You… were the Prince of Aerria?" Ruki gasped.

Takato nodded, "We lived with my mother's people for a while in their land.  But when the Black Knight became the Dragon King, he sent dragons in search of us.  They tore apart the land of my mother's people, and we barely escaped.  But while we were fleeing, two of the dragons over took us."

Jenrya interrupted curiously, "How did Guil and his parents find you?"

Takato smiled sadly, "I'm getting to that.  The clan of dragons that Guil belongs to are friends to the elves, thought they avoid humans.  My mother cried out for help, and Guil and his parents came to our aid.  His parents fought the other dragons and they managed to kill one of them.  But the other dragon was too strong, and he killed both of Guil's parents."

"How did you escape then?" Jenrya interrupted again.

"The dragon shot fire at us," Takato looked as though telling this part hurt him deeply, "and my mother used her body as a shield to protect me.  The burns were too severe…"

"That's terrible," Jenrya said.  Ruki's face remained cold.

"It was just a human infant and an infant dragon, against this full-grown dragon.  He would have killed us both, but a man saved us.  He appeared out of nowhere and ordered the dragon to stop its attack.  The dragon just laughed at him and prepared to send another blast of fire at us.  But the man raised a wooden staff he was carrying, and just as the dragon was about to kill us, he called down a blast of lightning from the sky.  It hit the dragon, charring it to the bones."

"He must have been very powerful," Ruki mumbled.

"Yes, he was an extremely powerful sorcerer.  He took Guil and I and raised us.  He taught me all he knew, though I still have a lot to learn."

"What happened to this man," Jenrya asked, "why aren't you still with him?"

Takato looked at the ground, "That's another sad story.  The sorcerer was a primary enemy of the Dragon King.  But the Dragon King has his own uses for magic, and created extremely powerful creatures to destroy him.  They attacked us one day, and though his fighting was amazing, they were too powerful, and killed him.  Guil and I managed to escape, but I think that the Dragon King is still after us too, though I don't think he knows who I am."  

A shrill scream echoed throughout the night, startling all of the travelers, except for the Dragon Slayer, who was surprised by nothing.  "What was that?" she asked calmly.

Takato's face seemed to pale and he shot to his feet, "It's them!"

"Who?" asked Jenrya.

"The creatures that killed the sorcerer.  We have to get out of here!"  Takato turned to the dragon, "Do you think you can carry all of us?"

"I think so," replied the dragon as it stood to its feet.

"Why are we running?" Ruki asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice.  "We have more than enough power to beat them, I could probably do it by myself.  We have the Paladin, a dragon and a sorcerer, there's no way they can beat us, unless the two of you are weaker than I assume you are."

Takato looked at her as if she was crazy, "These creatures are far more powerful than most dragons.  The only chance we have is to run."  He grabbed his belongings and climbed onto the back of the dragon.  

"What could be more powerful than a dragon?" inquired Jenrya.

"Yeah," added Ruki.

"Hurry up and climb on," Takato yelled, becoming inpatient.  "I'll explain once we're airborne!"

"What about Rena?  I'm not just going to leave her here," demanded Ruki.

"She'll be fine, they're after me.  They won't waste their time with her."

Jenrya was already climbing somewhat nervously onto the back of the dragon, and Ruki hesitated for a moment, trying to decide if she should just stay with Rena.  She could handle anything.  But the warriors heart that beat in her chest begged to have it flow with the hot blood of battle.  Takato was probably right, they wouldn't bother killing a horse.  She looked at the sorcerer and then ran back to Rena and whispered in the horse's ear, "I'll come back for you as soon as possible.  I'm going to make sure those two are alright."  The horse nodded as if in agreement, and the Dragon Slayer untied its reins from the tree so it could run if needed.  Then she ran back to the dragon and gracefully jumped on its back.  "I never though I would be riding on a stupid dragon," she said unhappily.

Guil beat his large red wings, blasting the flames of the fire with air.  In a few moments they were above the trees and heading north.  Ruki scanned the dark skies, looking for hints as to where these "incredibly powerful" creatures might be.  

The group was now floating through the clouds, all of them keeping wary eyes and ears.  Takato yelled back to them, "My master called them 'Spawns.'  They're half human, half dragons bred by the Dragon King.  We thought that the human part of them would only make them weaker than normal dragons, but we were wrong.  They have all the strength and power of a dragon, but the intelligence and cunning of a human.  They can even hide their wings and mask the other parts of themselves that are dragon, and walk unnoticed in a crowd of humans."

"Let me guess," Ruki scoffed at the Paladin, "even the freak creations of the Dragon King have a sacred life and shouldn't be killed."

"In this case I'll make an exception," Jenrya growled, "they don't seem to be good in any way, and it sounds like they don't even have a will of their own."

There was another scream.  Takato yelled, "They're on to us!"

"Let's land then," Ruki growled, "running didn't work, now its time to fight!"

"Trust me," Takato yelled to her, "you don't want to fight them!"

Ruki turned her head back and monitored the air.  In the distance she could see the dim outline of a silhouette.  She smirked and reached around her back for her bow, but not feeling it there remembered that she had left it packed on Rena.  "There's one behind us," she warned the others.

"They're getting near," Guil snorted, "I can smell them."

"Shit!" Takato yelled as a ball of fire burst from the clouds, heading their direction.  Guil tried to turn to dodge the attack, but was too slow.  The massive ball of fire hit his belly, jolting the riders harshly.  "Guil!" Takato screamed.

There was no answer, and the dragon began to spiral towards the ground.  Ruki quickly grabbed onto one of the dragon's wings and reached back to grab a hold of Jenrya who was already falling.  There were two more loud shrieks in the air above them.  Takato was shaking the dragon, trying to wake it up to no avail.

"We falling too fast," Jenrya yelled, "we're done for if we hit the ground!"

"Try and get as much of the dragon under you as possible," Ruki yelled, "it'll absorb all the impact when we hit the ground and we should be alright!"

"What!?" cried Takato.  "What about Guil?"

"He'll be fine!  It'll take a lot more than this little fall to kill a dragon his size."  The ground was rapidly approaching, and Ruki held on to the dragon with all of her might.  Then there was impact, and the jolt was so strong that she lost her hold and rolled away from the dragon.  A large cloud of dust rose and then dusted them with a thick layer.  

Ruki shook her head and tried to gain her composure.  Her left leg ached, but she checked and it wasn't broken.  She stood and looked at the fallen red dragon.  It wasn't moving, and its body had plunged a few feet into the soil when it hit.  But she had dealt with enough of the bastards to know that it wasn't dead, her instinct told her that.  Her next thought was of her two other companions.  "Takato! Jenrya! Are you guys ok?"

"I'm alright!" called the voice of the Paladin.

"Guil!" came the voice of the sorcerer.

Ruki ran to Takato, who was bent down at the head of his friend, shaking it.  She put her hand on his shoulder, "He'll be fine.  He's just stunned.  For right now we need to worry about those Spawns, so get ready to fight!"

Takato raised his eyes to her and said firmly, "You're right."

Ruki's sword sung as she unsheathed it and took battle stance, waiting for the enemies.  Takato stood silently, holding his staff at his side, a fierceness shining in his eyes.  Jenrya was also in battle position, no weapon drawn but his bare hands.  

There was another shriek, and then like two dark angels the Spawns descended, evil gleams in their eyes.  They each landed on an opposite side of the dragon, smirking at they're prey.  They had large scaly wings protruding from their backs, and large white claws protruded from the tips of each of their hands.  There was the gleam of some organic armor on their chests and shoulders.  Long, razor like spikes decorated the tips of their long tails.  

"So," one with reptilian spikes protruding from the top of his head chuckled, "we've finally managed to hunt down the sorcerer's apprentice, and his pathetic excuse for a dragon."

"I will avenge my master's death," Takato growled.

"Ha!  You would need to be much more powerful than your master, and I highly doubt you've improved much since the last time we met.  And who are these two?  Did they come to share in your death?"

"We're standing by our friend's side," Jenrya answered.  "If you want to kill him, you'll have to kill us as well."

"That won't be a challenge," the spiked head laughed.

"What are you smiling about, girl?" asked the other Spawn, this one having scales and a fin on top of his head.

"I've been getting bored lately, dragons are becoming scarcer and dumber every day.  It's good to finally have a challenge!" the Dragon Slayer replied.

"Fear rips through my black heart!" laughed the finned one.

"In past ages I was called the 'Angel of Death,' but now I go by the simple title of 'Dragon Slayer.'  Don't underestimate me."

"Ah yes, I've heard of you, a warrior of unrivaled power.  It's thought that you were killed in the siege of Icarnia, beaten down in a single blow by Aurung the Great."  Ruki's face grew tenser as this was mentioned.  The Spawn continued, "It will please the King to know that the killer of his dragons is really nothing more than a ghost from Icarnia.  Just think of the reward I'll receive when I present your head to him on a silver platter!"

Ruki continued to smile, "You talk to much!"  Then she leapt forward, swinging her sword vertically at the Spawn's head.  The Spawn raised one of its armored arms, parrying the blow with ease.

*******          

Seeing the battle between Ruki and the Spawn begin, Takato and Jenrya simultaneously attacked the other Spawn.  Jenrya flew through the air, a kick aimed at the creatures head.  The spawn dodged and watched as Jenrya landed behind him, gracefully putting his feet on the ground and whipping around to face his opponent.  Then Takato's staff impacted the creature's head, knocking it hard to the ground.  The Spawn shook its head more out of surprise than pain, and jumped to its feet, raising its wings into the air.  It beats its wings furiously, knocking Takato, who had been following through with another attack, to the ground.  

Jenrya followed it as it glided through the air toward a small patch of trees.  Takato, having recovered from the blow, swung his staff.  A bright ball of blue energy shot from it, hitting the Spawn's left wing.  There was a crackle and squeal as a thick coating of ice formed around the entirety of the wing.  The spawn let out a cry and crashed to the ground amidst the trees.  

Jenrya ripped a branch from one of the trees as he passed by it.  He brought the branch down, aiming it at the Spawn's frozen wing.  But before he could make contact, the Spawn kicked him in the chest with one of its clawed feet.  Jenrya was sent sprawling back and into a tree.  He lay there dazed for a moment.  The Spawn rose and flexed the muscles in its wing, shattering the ice that surrounded it.  He laughed and then raised his hands in the air.  A bright ball of flames formed between the two hands and the creature let out a shriek of triumph as it fired the fireball at the stunned Paladin.  Jenrya's eyes widened as he saw the ball coming his way, and he tried to move but knew he didn't have enough time.  Just then Takato stepped between Jenrya and the screaming fireball.  With a strong swing of his staff he hit the ball of fire, causing it to explode and send streams of fire onto all the surrounding trees.  The grove was now completely ablaze and the balls of smoke tumbled into the sky.  

Takato helped the Paladin to his feet and the two of them faced the Spawn.  It walked through the flames like a demon through the fires of hell.  "I've had enough playing around!" it cried.  It formed another fireball between it hands and threw it at the two friends.

Takato raised the staff over his head and rotated it in a circle.  Just as the ball would have hit them, it reflected off an invisible wall, almost hitting its owner on its return.  The spawn growled angrily and tore one of the trees from the ground.  He swung it at the invisible wall with all his might, but it shattered into millions of splinters as it impacted.  Takato smiled victoriously.

"You can't hide in there forever," the Spawn growled.  Takato frowned.

Then a piece of burning wood crashed from above the sorcerer, catching the hand he held his staff in and burning it.  Takato let out a cry of pain and dropped the staff.  Realizing what he had done, he quickly reached down to grab the staff, but when he looked up the Spawn was already standing over him, one of its clawed hands raised over him.

Jenrya gulped and mumbled some kind of prayer.  Takato looked at the Spawn with eyes widened in defeat.  It only smiled in return.  Then Takato slowly smiled.  The Spawn, confused, turned around to see two large eyes behind him.  Before the Spawn could react the massive jaws and teeth had already clamped around him.  Guil thrashed his head around, the Spawn flailing in Guil's jaws as if he nothing more than a rag doll, crying.  Then, the dragon set his jaws on the ground and placed his front foot on the upper part of the Spawn who let out a muffled cry.  The dragon then pulled his head away from his foot, tearing the Spawn in two with a sickening sound.  

*******          

Ruki whipped around, dodging the blow of the Spawn.  She growled at the confidence which shown from her opponents face.  She swung again, this time aiming at the creature's legs.  The Spawn lifted into the air, causing the blow to miss its target, and then the Spawn landed behind her.   He seemed to be toying with her.

"You fight with too much emotion!" laughed the creature.  "Do you expect me to just stand in the way of your blow?"

"I expect you to die" cried Ruki as she thrust her sword in at its chest.  With a quick swipe the Spawn hit the sword and causing it to impale the ground rather than him.  Then he slapped her, sending her reeling back, a trickle of blood rippled down her cheek.  She wiped the blood away and glanced over her shoulder, the grove of trees was now ablaze, and the Paladin and sorcerer in it.  She groaned, as soon as she was done with this one, she would have to save those two.  She turned back to her opponent who was watching her with amuse.  "A few different sword strokes and a lot of anger, is that all you've got?  I think that your titles give you much more glory than you deserve!"

Ruki smirked, a few drops of sweat trickled down her forehead, "You talk big considering you're always the one on the defensive!"

"Then I shall attack!" the creature laughed as it raised one of its hands and then plowed it into the ground.  Ruki gaped as a wave of earth rose up under her, sending her flying back a few feet.  She rolled and jumped to her feet again.  The Spawn wasn't there.  She looked to her sides to see if he had moved there, and then she remembered the sky.  She raised her sword just in time to block to the blow of the Spawn as it crashed down on her.  Her knees bent at the force and she had to struggle not to fall.  

The Spawn ascended again, and raised his hands over his head, then he threw a large ball of fire at her.  Ruki swung her sword vertically, cutting through the fire and sending it spraying on both sides of her.  But while she was still recovering from the swing the Spawn landed directly in front of her.  Not having enough time to use her sword, she kicked him in the side, driving the steel spike on her boot into his flesh.  

She smirked, expecting him to recoil in pain, but as she raised her head she saw him only smiling at her.  The spawn raised his hand, the claws gleaming with the light of the burning grove, and then brought them down and across her stomach.  The armor she wore screamed as it was cut to ribbons and a spray of hot blood washed the creature's hand.  Ruki let out a startled cry and started to back away.  Another swing of the creature's clawed hand knocked away her sword and another followed that, cutting into her stomach even more.  In shock, Ruki slowly fell to her knees.  Blood poured from her wound and  dripped from her mouth.  She weakly raised her eyes to the Spawn who was no longer smiling.  The moon shown brightly behind him as he stood over her in victory.  He raised his hand, claws gleaming, and he then he swung, this time aiming the blow at her neck.

*******          

Takato and Jenrya watched in remote horror as the other Spawn sliced his claws through Ruki's belly and the knocked away her sword.  She reeled back and the fell to her knees.  Jenrya was screaming at her to get up.  

Takato's heart stopped as the creature raised its hand for the final deathblow.  Then, without thinking he raised the staff into the air as high as he could.  Despite how unfriendly she had been, and the fact that she did want to kill his best friend, he knew that he couldn't let her die.  Something inside him screamed and an overwhelming power took hold of him.  The wind fiercely thrashed his hair and his eyes seemed to glow.  The instant he raised his staff, there was a loud boom of thunder and a bright flash of light.  A river of lightning blazed down from the sky, directly impacting the Spawn.  The flesh of the creature melted and his bones burned instantaneously.  When the flash of light cleared, there was nothing in front of Ruki but a pile of smoldering ash.  

Jenrya looked at Takato in amazement.  Takato smiled weakly, "I don't even know how to cast that spell…"

They heard Ruki groan and both of them rushed to her.  Jenrya stood in front of her and placed his hands on her shoulders.  She looked at him blindly and coughed, spraying him with blood.  Then she fell to the ground.  Jenrya quickly rolled her onto her back, noticing the pool of blood around her.  He removed the shredded plate of armor that covered her stomach and examined the wounds.  Takato handed him a piece of cloth he had torn from his cloak and Jenrya used it to try and stop the bleeding.

"The wounds are bad," Jenrya said gravely.

"How… bad?" Takato stuttered.

"These are mortal wounds.  I think I can control the bleeding, but even then she'll only live for a few hours, unless the creatures claws were poisoned, then she'll be dead in a few minutes… unless, by chance, you know some sort of healing spell."

Takato shook his head sadly, "I don't know any that would work for this much damage."

"Then… there's no hope…"

"Wait!" Takato cried, "I know someone who might be able to help her.  It shouldn't take long to get there if we fly."

"Then we've got to hurry, we don't have much time!"

"Right, Guil get over here!  We have to find Juri!"

Author's Note: Well, I have mixed feelings about this chapter.  Let me know what you think, I appreciate your reviews!


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